Episode 19 – Anybody Hungry? The Cannibalism Episode
Hello, Clarice. Welcome to the Cannibalism episode. Today, we discuss this ancient and widely practiced custom and our feelings about it. Join us for a BBQ? Or is sushi style more your thing? Ah...to each their own, right? Get your napkins ready! Let's dive in!
TRIGGER WARNING: In case it wasn't obvious, this episodes contains descriptions of cannibalism. Discretion is advised.
STOP! INSIDE JOKES AHEAD!
If you haven’t gotten to listen to the episode yet, spoiler alert! This post contains lots of stuff that will make waaay more sense if you listen to the episode before or while reading. So if you haven’t already, pump the brakes and listen to the episode or just click above to play so that you can be in on all the shenanigans to follow!
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Produced by Peter Woodward
Listener Story
Felix sent in a cool story about a place and situation that should have been routine and familiar but then suddenly turned…strange. A well-used road that should have been familiar suddenly was not. Strange words and places were coming from a broadcast on his radio. And then suddenly…everything went back to normal. WEIRD. It’s a good one!
And in case you were wondering…
Peter mentioned the broadcast hijacking that took place on a Chicago TV station in 1987. Max Headroom was a TV character from the 80s. While wearing a Max Headroom costume, the hijacker broke in on a sports news segment and then an episode of Dr. Who for a few seconds at a time. Apparently, the hijacker mooned the camera and spanked his own butt with a flyswatter. Glad he used his big moment to really get his message across to the people. He has never been caught.
What is cannibalism...bedsides gross?
Cannibalism is defined as the act or practice of humans eating the flesh or internal organs of other human beings. It involves consuming all or part of another individual of the same species as food.
Recorded in more than 1500 species, including humans, it was practiced as far back as the Neanderthals.
The word originates with the 1600s Island Carib people of the Lesser Antilles Islands in the West Indies (southwest of Puerto Rico in the Atlantic). The Spanish explorers called them Canibales meaning “savage”, their name for the Carib people.
Two Flavors...bleh
Two main types of cannibalism are practiced: endocannibalism and exocannibalism.
Endocannibalism involves consuming someone from the same community. Most often this form was practiced as part of a tribe or group belief system that is a ritual as part of a grieving process.
- Exocannibalism involves consuming someone from the outside. This form was practiced as a a post-war victory agains a rival tribe.
- What was largely common to both is the belief that eating a person’s flesh or internal organs would endow the consumer with characteristics of the deceased.
Who Did That?
Well…it turns out…lots of people did that. And for lots of different reasons. Let’s look at some!
Some Cultures In the World That...You Know...Indulged
* In 1600s Europe, ingesting human parts was thought to stave off disease, and as we know, there was LOTS of disease throughout Europe. Apparently, this was a medical trend of the time. Bizarre.
* In Ancient Roman Egypt, cannibalism was necessary during famine. One such example is The Great Famine of 1199-1202, which had a death toll of over 100,000 Egyptians. Of note, an ancient Egyptian king named King Unas had a hymn on his tomb that portrayed him as a cannibal.
* In Papua New Guinea, the Korowai Tribe was an Indonesian tribe discovered in 1970s that was completely isolated from the rest of the world.This culture believed it was necessary to kill and eat a person possessed by a demon to both rid the world of the evil and rescue the affected person’s soul. Rumors persist that there may still be cannibalism practiced by facets of this tribe even today!
War Crimes...
many cases of soldiers, including child soldiers not only killing people, but then eating their hearts afterward. Reportedly, the soldiers did this on orders from their commanders.
In the Congo, during First and Second Congolese Civil Wars (1996-2003), soldiers mutilated people and ate body parts. Similarly to what occurred in Liberia, militia leaders used this tactic as a way to intimidate and also indoctrinate the especially young fighters to make them willing to cross boundaries. Apparently, soldiers fed body parts to prisoners of war as well. Yikes.
Jean-Pierre Bemba, a prominent militia leader during the Congolese Wars, spent a decade in prison for crimes against humanity and war crimes. Allegedly, his men were the ones feeding body parts to POWs under his orders. This guy currently serves as the Vice Prime Minister and defense minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo…hmmm.
Japanese soldiers during World War 2 were eating enemy soldiers and POWs in the 1940s. In one infamous instance, the brutal and cruel consumption of four American Naval pilots took place on the island of Chichijima in Japan. During a bombing raid, nine pilots were shot down and eight of them were captured by Japanese soldiers. It is known as the Chichijima Incident, and former US President George Bush was the only pilot to escape capture.
Numerous Japanese soldiers were tried for war crimes in relation to this incident. Lieutenant General Yoshio Tachibana and Vice Admiral Kunizo Mori commanded the Chichijima air base at the time. They along with Major Sueyo Matoba and Captain Shizuo Yoshii were found guilty of crimes against humanity and subsequently hanged. Boom.
YouTube rockstar Mr. Ballen has an excellent episode about this story that you should definitely check out. There’s even a book about it called Flyboys: A True Story of Courage by James Bradley.
More? Oh, Yes...More.
Dude…why was cannibalism so widespread?? Was this like the secret favorite pastime throughout the world that nobody discussed? Here’s some more instances of confirmed cannibalistic activity!
* The Jamestown colony in the US: cannibalism due to famine.
* The French ship Méduse in 1816: cannibalism after a shipwreck to prevent starvation.
* Eastern Europe and Russia: cannibalism to prevent starvation due to famine in Povolzhie (1921-22) in the Soviet Union. Thousands of incidences were reported. It was so bad, parents consumed their own children!
* American soldiers and POWs during WWII: cannibalism to prevent starvation.
* China during the Great Leap Forward (Communist movement) in 1958-1962: cannibalism for survival when rural China was hit by famine and drought.
* North Korea: cannibalism to prevent starvation during famine in the 1990s.
* India: cannibalism as a spiritual exercise. A group called the Aghori believes eating human flesh prevents aging and honors the dead. They only eat those who volunteer their bodies upon their death. Horrifyingly, they still practice this TODAY!
Hey, look…a video on them! Peter discussed this documentary during the episode. Just what you wanted!
Survival of the...Least Squeamish?
One of the most famous instances of documented cannibalism for survival is that of the Donner Party or Donner-Reed Party in 1846-1847.
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Several families traveling became stranded while on the Oregon Trail
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as they migrated from Illinois to California. They reached the Sierra Nevada mountain range and became trapped by early heavy snowfall.
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When cattle and horses died off, they boiled oxhide and the bones of the animals repeatedly to try to make soup, but, obviously, they could not be sustained on that alone.
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Those in the group going out to try to find help would consume the members of the party that were dying along the way. Several instances of murder occurred as well. Consumption of the dead was also happening at the camp of those waiting for rescue. In total, they were stranded for almost four months.
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Reportedly, only one family, the Reeds, did not eat human flesh, but everyone else did. Of the original 87, only 48 people survived the entire ordeal.
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While indeed tragic and shocking, the incident was greatly sensationalized by newspapers across the US, and is still talked about to this day.
And because I couldn’t resist…
Jonathan referenced Expedition Unknown Season 10 Episode 13: Donner Party Horror and Heroes, which contains the full story of these poor souls. At the time of this post, the show airs on the Discovery channel and is available to stream on Discovery+.
Cannibalism...Because You Wanna
So…now we’re gonna talk about people who ate victims for sexual gratification. Good grief. Who would do that? Glad you asked.
The infamous and super effing gross Jeffery Dahmer did that. Active from 1978-1991, he captured, assaulted, mutilated, and killed young gay men and ate some of their parts. Those he didn’t finish were saved in his fridge. When interviewed after his capture, he described the ingestion of his victims as another way to keep them with him. Sicko and whacko.
Another murderous cannibal was Albert Fish. Active from 1910-1934, he captured, assaulted, killed, and ate mostly little boys. He confessed to drinking the blood of one of his victims and making him into a stew. Reportedly, he also enjoyed shoving needles into his nether-regions and felt compelled to write and send obscene letters.
Armin Meiwes was arrested in 2002 for the murder of Berndt Brandes. Called “the Rotenburg Cannibal” or “The Master Butcher”, he is unique in that his victim was 100% willing to be mutilated, killed, and eaten. Meiwes found him online in a chatroom for cannibals. Because that’s a thing. Apparently.
- He ate approximately 20 kilos of the victim’s flesh over several months. In his post-arrest interviews, Meiwes stated he ate Brandes for both sexual gratification and keeping him with him.
- This is the guy Peter talked about that ate…the guy’s…you know…penis…at his own request. IDK. People have problems, man.
In Written Works...
The fairy tale Hansel and Gretel had cannibalistic roots! The whole “children being eaten thing” was based on actual occurrences of cannibalism during the Great Famine of 1314-1322. It was a time of worldwide crop failure and starvation. People dug up dead bodies to eat the flesh and ate their children to survive. No wonder those kids didn’t have any qualms about eating pieces of somebody’s house!
The fairy tale Snow White and the Seven Dwarves features cannibalism for the sake of beauty. Snow White’s Wicked Stepmother sent a huntsman after her when she ran away to retrieve her heart and liver. The stepmother intended to consume both and obtain some of Snow White’s beauty as a result. It’s a bit tamed in the Disney movie version, but the original tale laid it alllllll out.
The inspiration for Herman Melville’s classic Moby Dick came from a real-life incident where cannibalism was practiced. Jeremy told us the tale (while accompanied by a softly-playing sea shanty in the background) of the crew of The Essex. A sperm whale attacked and sank their vessel, leaving the surviving crew members to fend for themselves while searching for land and awaiting rescue.
Despite finding an island with fresh water, the food supply was virtually non-existent. Unfortunately, as the food supply dwindled, they were forced to eat the dead. Eventually, they devised a system for who would be sacrificed for the survival of the group and who would perform the act by drawing straws. They then cannibalized the chosen sailor after killing them. Yikes.
In Greek mythology, Cronus, father of Zeus, was said to have eaten his five children when they were born because of a prophecy that one of them would overthrow him. Zeus survived because he was hidden by his mother Rhea on the isle of Crete. Aaaaand he ended up overthrowing his dad. So, you know. Cronus was right to be worried. Zeus actually made him barf up his siblings as part of the lore, too. So there’s that.
Can Cannibalism Damage Your Brain? Yes, It Can Can.
There exists a disease in cows called Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE). It is better known as “mad cow disease” and was a very scary and present thing in the early 2000s. Cows get this disease by being fed meat-and-bone meal that contains bits of other cows infected with BSE. Apparently, dead cows get put into cow food: involuntary cannibalism!
The first ever case of BSE in North America was discovered in 2003, which caused a panic in the US beef and cattle industry.
Ingestion of beef tainted with BSE had been known to induce new variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (nvCJD) in humans. This is essentially the human equivalent of mad cow disease. Transmission of BSE is not fully understood; however, it is thought that eating contaminated meat or contacting infected tissue is the most likely method.
While extremely rare, it is incurable and directly affects the nervous system. Normal proteins in the body called prions become abnormally shaped in the presence of mad cow disease. This causes lesions to form on the brain, which then leads to brain dysfunction. Symptoms include rapid and progressive dementia, loss of muscle control, paralysis, and death.
Add to that the fact that the disease can lie dormant in the nervous system for years before surfacing, AND there is no way to test for its presence in meat. Very scary.
Bottom line: cannibalism = no bueno. Don’t do that.
WHAT THE HECK ELSE DID WE DISCUSS?
Cannibal Sandwich
Out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, ladies and gentlemen: the Cannibal Sandwich. It’s also referred to as “tiger meat” and “wildcat” and it is eaten RAW. According to an article, the sandwich appears at Christmas and is a long-standing tradition, especially in southern Wisconsin.
It is made with rye bread, fresh raw beef, chopped onion, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper.
You know what else was in Milwaukee? This guy. Yeah, that’s right. Freakin’ Dahmer.
Just sayin…
Amelia Earhart Disappearance
This could definitely be a whole episode of its own, but for now, let’s just leave it with this. The latest theory is that the famous pilot landed on an island swarming with coconut crabs and they took her out! Yikes.
Mummia
It could be purchased as recently as 1924 from a legitimate pharmaceutical company called Merck & Co. This company is still in operation and guess what…STILL USES POWDERED MUMMY AS MEDICINE! Cross my heart, I swear!
Here’s the link. Check it out:
https://www.emdgroup.com/en/stories/powdered-mummies-used-as-medicine.html
Peter also referenced an article that compared and contrasted different mummia products! Here’s that little gem:
https://www.wweek.com/culture/olde-portland/2017/01/03/we-tried-different-brands-of-mummy-powder-so-you-dont-have-to/
Nantucket Sleighride
You’re in the little boat, whale pulls the little boat: it’s a Nantucket Sleighride.
Strange Woods Recommends...
Prince of Egypt (1998)
The Good Doctor (2017)
Watch them. They are awesome.
Aaaand that’s it! A lot of information about a really gross topic. But we hope you’ll agree…it is a fascinating one. I mean, people eating people: it’s insane. But literally practiced worldwide and may still continue today in some areas. Crazy.
But thanks again, as always, for stopping by. We appreciate you guys so much! A few things before you go:
1) Peter’s theory of a parallel dimension as the time when people see Bigfoot, UFOs, or experience the Mandela effect…interesting thought. Hmmm.
2)To Catch a Cannibal is going to be trademarked by Jonathan. Don’t try to steal it. It’s his idea.
3) Jeremy is coming for them legs. He thinks we’re overpopulated and eating people is the solution. Start the hashtag: #MakeAmericaCannibalsAgain
4) Pun very much intended: you should always ‘chicken out’ if a cannibal tries to eat you! Heehee.
Stay strange!
References, articles, and sources:
Peter’s wife. Registered nurse. Uber-fan of The Strange Woods Podcast.
